Improve my penmanship

http://www.paperpenalia.com/handwriting.html

Hello..

I’m slowly realizing my handwriting isn’t as bad as it use to be. As long as I keep my strokes slow and don’t let the anxiety of ‘how it’s looking’ prevent me from just being natural with it. Alot of it has to do with spelling though…I like to use big words that I can’t spell, so I’ll scribble through them, and thats really a confidence problem manifesting itself…shrug…bit by bit…

My problem is that I always rush my writing like if I don’t slow down then I’m going to forget the next word I’m supposed to write.

It’s funny because I always think that when I write neat it takes too long to get my point across.

I read in some 19th century book i found on the ‘internet archive’ that to train yourself in writing with your arm, you can hold the pen between your thumb and the middle knuckle of your index finger, thereby isolating your index finger so that even if it wants to it can’t effect any movement on the pen. It seems to work, but I don’t know if it can be a adopted as a regular finger position because its slightly hard to hold.

Getting your shoulder to write has always been a battle. When I concentrate on it for a day or two, theres improvement, but then time and time again I forget totally about it until the next time I come across something that reminds me and then the process starts over again.

That is to say, I understand that to make this happen merely requires me to direct my will such that my hand responds with a script potentially more legible to others. Then I think…nah, that’s what keyboards are for.

my penmanship is good enough. and after the amazing year and a half I’ve had, I realize I want to spend my time/money and energy on those things that are important and urgent. maybe later, but this isn’t either important or urgent right now.

I feel I am worthy of saying I have good penmanship. When I write in cursive its beautiful. I also write really nice block letering because it is a lesson I am doing in one of my classes.

I have combined this with my reciting Shakespeare. So I just rewrite Shakespeare over and over in my best handwritng to help memorize it and I have improved in both areas.

So tonight I’m working on my penmanship. (left handed)..and I busted out my name, totally clean left handed. Indeed I was shocked. I’m still not very consistent with it, but I’d say I’m at 50% with it. When I write left handed I’m slowly starting to think less about my pen strokes..and more on ‘what I want to write down’. Its eerie, and I love it ;-)